Roller-way conveyors

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to roller-way conveyors and provides a simple means for diverting articles therefrom. A driven roller or wheel engageable by an article or container travelling along the conveyor can be turned about an upstanding axis between a position in which it permits of through conveyance and a position in which it produces lateral diversion.

United States Patent Alfred George Smith;

Colin Alfred Provis, both of Wembley, Middlesex, England May 12, 1969 Jan. 4, l 972 Dexion Limited Wembley, Middlesex, England May 14, 1968 Great Britain lnventors Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee Priority ROLLER-WAY CONVEYORS 6 Claims, 3 Drawing Figs.

us. Cl 198/81, 198/127 Int. Cl 865g 37/00 Field of Search 198/20, 33,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,470,922 5/1949 Dunn 198/81 2,873,836 2/ 1959 Stubblifield 198/31 AC 3,174,613 3/1965 lnsolio 198/127 3,333,714 8/1967 Sermet 198/127 FOREIGN PATENTS 380,242 7/1907 France 193/36 Primary ExaminerRichard E. Aegerter Attorney-Sommers & Young ABSTRACT: The invention relates to roller-way conveyors and provides a simple means for diverting articles therefrom. A driven roller or wheel engageable by an article or container travelling along the conveyor can be turned about an upstanding axis between a position in which it permits of through conveyance and a position in which it produces lateral diversion.

PATENTEDJAN 41972 3,631. 963

sum 1 [IF 3 PATENTEU JAN 4 I972 SHEET 2 [1F 3 FIG.2

ROLLER-WAY convsvons This invention concerns improvements relating to rollerway conveyors, particularly such of the gravity type. It seeks to provide a very simple, but effective and reliable, means for enabling an article or container to be diverted from such a conveyor.

According to the invention, in a roller-way conveyor, a driven roller, or wheel, engageable by an article or container travelling on the conveyor is adapted for being turned about an upstanding axis between a through-conveying position and a diverting position. For many purposes, it is sufiicient to provide for turning a single such roller through about 45 to ensure diversion of articles or containers, such as cartons or boxes, into a course at right angles to that of their previous conveyance.

Conveniently the diverting roller may be driven through a bevel wheel coaxial with its axis of rotation and a bevel wheel coaxial with a vertical axis about which the roller can be turned. The vertical shaft of the latter wheel might be individually driven, for example through a small air turbine or electric motor. Preferably, however, it is driven, possibly in common with the shafts of other diverting rollers, through a V-belt engaging with a pulley on the lower end of the said shaft.

One manner in which the invention can be carried into effect will now be more fully described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an end elevation, party in section, of a diverting unit shown with its diverting roller in the straight-through position.

FIG. 2 is a plan view thereof, and

FIG. 3 is a plan view of part of a conveyor system to a smaller scale, illustrating one mode of use of such units.

The unit illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 comprises a single diverting roller 1 integral and coaxial with a bevel wheel rotatable about a horizontal shaft 3 at the upper end 4 of a curved bracket 5. The wheel 2 meshes with a bevel wheel 6 which is coupled to a vertical shaft 7 by a pin 8 engaged in a diametral slot 9 in the said wheel and is retained by a clip ring 10. Above the wheel 6, the shaft 7 is mounted in the brackets by an oil-impregnated bearing 11 and, below the said wheel in ball bearings at 12 and 13. Fast on the shaft 7 between the latter bearings is a double pulley l4 grooved for multiple-V belts, of which one belt 15 is indicated in cross section in FIG. 1.

The bracket 5 has a base 16 which embraces the shaft 7 by way of a ball bearing and rests by way of an annular nylon pad 17 on a downwardly recessed plate 18 which is bolted, together with a boxlike framework 19 of the unit, to the underside of a channel-shaped member 20 of the conveyor proper. The roller 1, bracket 5, shaft 7 and associated parts project freely through a hole 20' in the bottom of the channel 20. The base 16 is coupled by a cranked link 21 to a bar 22 connected to the core (not seen) of a solenoid electromagnet 23. The bracket 5 is loaded towards the end position illustrated by a tension spring 24 (FIG. 2) anchored at 25. This end position is adjustably determined'by the engagement of a stop 26 connected to the bar 22 with a stop 27 which is adjustably fixed in the framework 19 by a screw 28 engaged in a slot 29 (FIG. 2) extending parallel to the direction of armature movement. To permit of variation of the effective movement of the armature, the magnet 23 itself may be secured in the framework 19 in such a manner as to permit of its adjustment in the direction of armature movement.

In use, the roller 1 is rotated continuously through' the gearing 6, 2 from the shaft 7, which is driven by a belt 15 engaging with part of the pulley 14. The other part of the pulley 14 may be utilized to transmit a drive onward to a further such unit. The belt 15 is tensioned by a jockey pulley 30 whose mounting is adjustable in a slot 29 similar to the slot 29. When it is desired to divert an article, for example a carton, from the straight-through" path of the conveyor, i.e., from the direction in which the channel 20 extends, it is only necessary to energize the magnet 23, so that the bracket 5 and roller 1 are turned clockwise by the link 21 about the shaft 7 through 90 or such less angle as may be required. When the magnet is deenergiacd, the bracket and roller 1 will be immediately returned, to the position illustrated, by the spring 24. As will be understood, the turning movements are produced without interruption of the drive to the roller 1. The unit can be readily adapted for use where the bracket 16 and roller require to be turned in the opposite sense about the shaft 7. It is necessary only to transpose the relative positions of the solenoid 23 and stop 27 on the the hand and the spring 24 and jockey pulley 30 on the other.

Instead of the electromagnet 23, pneumatic operating means may be provided. The turning of the roller 1 may be effected under either manual or automatic control.

If desired, the. roller 1 may have a tire of resilient or frictionenhancing material.

A single unit such as has been described may be used as a simple diverting means at an individual diversion point, for example a discharge point, on a conveyor system. However, a plurality of units may be employed to provide for more complex diversion operations, for instance and with particular advantage for the selective delivery of articles from a mainor' freely rotatable rollers 31 located, like the rollers l, at the midwidth of the conveyor. The diverting units are located, at

intervals along the conveyor, substantially opposite to respective lateral roller ways constituting storage lanes. The vertical axes about which the rollers 1 can be turned should be located slightly in advance, say by 1% inch, with reference to the direction 33, of the prolonged centerline of the respective lateral roller way (see FIG. 3). When a roller 1 is turned to the diverting position, an approaching article will then be delivered onto the said lateral roller way in the direction 34. Each lateral roller way comprises initial wide roller 32 flush with the rollers 1 (FIG. 1) followed by freely rotatable rollers 35 disposed to form a roller way with a slope of, say, 2.

In such a system, it is advantageous that diversion can be effected rapidly, i.e., within a short distance on the main conveyor. This means that the lanes of roller ways in the storage racking can be very closely spaced beside each other. Moreover, since the diverting unit requires only a small amount of space in the vertical direction, main conveyors can be closely spaced also in that direction to match tiers of such lanes in the racking. Nevertheless, the diverting means is relatively inexpensive.

In the system illustrated, both the main and the lateral conveyors are gravity conveyors, although the rollers 1 may assist in propelling the articles. However, the invention could be applied also to conveyors with driven rollers instead of some or all of the rollers 31, 31' 32 and 35. As a matter of convenience, diverting units such as have been described can be utilized simply for the driving action of their rollers 1 set in the straight-through position.

As an alternative for a bevel or a spur toothed-wheel drive, a diverting roller may be arranged to be driven frictionally at a bevel surface on the side of its tire or rim, for instance from a bevel surface on a continuous belt through the intennediary of an inclined roller mounted in a bracket supporting the diverting roller. The bracket can be turned through a sufiicient angle to effect diversion without interfering with such a drive although some canting of the diverting roller will occur. To afford support to the belt, an oppositely inclined roller engaging a bevel surface on the other side of the belt may be provided in a fixed mounting opposite to the diverting roller. The belt itself may be of roughly T-section with the bevel surfaces on the upright part of the T. Such a belt can be used for driving other rollers of a conveyor by engaging in the lower part of a V-section circumferential groove in each roller, under which the belt is arranged to pass. The roller may be spring loaded in its mounting.

We claim:

1. A storage-installation conveyor system; comprising, a straight, main roller-way feed conveyor; a plurality of straight, closely spaced storage conveyors mounted substantially perpendicular to said feed conveyor and extending to complementary storage areas; diverting means, equal in number to the number of said storage conveyors, mounted at spaced points along said feed conveyor immediately adjacent the ends of said storage conveyors for abruptly diverting an object from its normal direction of travel on said feed conveyor to the direction of travel on one of said storage conveyors, including, a single driven roller means located essentially midway between the sides of said feed conveyor, normally oriented in said normal direction of travel of said feed conveyor and engageable with said object traveling on said feed conveyor, support means for said roller means pivotally mounted on a vertical axis for rotation of said roller means and said support means thereabout through a 90 angle, drive means for driving said roller means, and pivot means, comprising spring means connected to one side of said support means and normally biasing said support means and said roller means in the nonnal direction of travel on said feed conveyor, a reciprocatable rod connected to a means for reciprocating said rod and to a stop means, a second stop means mounted on the frame and cooperating with the stop means of said reciprocatable rod to stop said rod at a predetermined point when said support means and said roller means are returned to their normal position by said spring means, link means connected to said reciprocatable rod and to said support means to pivot said support means and said roller means in the opposite direction against the biasing action of said spring means, for pivoting said roller means and said support means from a position in said normal direction of travel on said feed conveyor to position in said direction of travel on said storage conveyor.

2. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for driving the driven roller comprises a bevel wheel coaxial with the axis of rotation of said roller and a bevel wheel coaxial with the vertical axis of rotation of said roller.

3. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 2, wherein the bevel wheel coaxial with the vertical axis of the roller is mounted on a shah coaxial with said axis of said roller about which said roller can be turned and a V-belt pulley is coupled to said shaft.

4. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the driven roller, the support means for said roller, the means for driving said roller and the means for pivoting said roller form a unitary assembly attached to the conveyor system proper.

5. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the storage conveyors are roller-ways.

6. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for reciprocating the rod is a solenoid electromagnet.

i i II 

1. A storage-installation conveyor system; comprising, a straight, main roller-way feed conveyor; a plurality of straight, closely spaced storage conveyors mounted substantially perpendicular to said feed conveyor and extending to complementary storage areas; diverting means, equal in number to the number of said storage conveyors, mounted at spaced points along said feed conveyor immediately adjacent the ends of said storage conveyors for abruptly diverting an object from its normal direction of travel on said feed conveyor to the direction of travel on one of said storage conveyors, including, a single driven roller means located essentially midway between the sides of said feed conveyor, normally oriented in said normal direction of travel of said feed conveyor and engageable with said object traveling on said feed conveyor, support means for said roller means pivotally mounted on a vertical axis for rotation of said roller means and said support means thereabout through a 90* angle, drive means for driving said roller means, and pivot means, comprising spring means connected to one side of said support means and normally biasing said support means and said roller means in the normal direction of travel on said feed conveyor, a reciprocatable rod connected to a means for reciprocating said rod and to a stop means, a second stop means mounted on the frame and cooperating with the stop means of said reciprocatable rod to stop said rod at a predetermined point when said support means and said roller means are returned to their normal position by said spring means, link means connected to said reciprocatable rod and to said support means to pivot said support means and said roller means in the opposite direction against the biasing action of said spring means, for pivoting said roller means and said support means from a position in said normal direction of travel on said feed conveyor to position in said direction of travel on said storage conveyor.
 2. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for driving the driven roller comprises a bevel wheel coaxial with the axis of rotation of said roller and a bevel wheel coaxial with the vertical axis of rotation of said roller.
 3. A conveyoR system in accordance with claim 2, wherein the bevel wheel coaxial with the vertical axis of the roller is mounted on a shaft coaxial with said axis of said roller about which said roller can be turned and a V-belt pulley is coupled to said shaft.
 4. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the driven roller, the support means for said roller, the means for driving said roller and the means for pivoting said roller form a unitary assembly attached to the conveyor system proper.
 5. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the storage conveyors are roller-ways.
 6. A conveyor system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for reciprocating the rod is a solenoid electromagnet. 